Synthetic HeartbeatsAlways
by Super Stellar Lunatic
Summary: Just a collection of one-shots I felt inspired to write while on a caffeine high... Rated T, just in case. First chapter: LeeTen. Second: ShikaTema. Third:KakaAnko. Requests will be taken, so if there is a pairing you want, tell me, and I'll do my best.
1. LeeTen

2020: Um, well. Here I go again... This is a random series that's pretty much just a set of one-shots. Each has a specific pairing that it is centric around. And of course, Chi and Hai are causing the pairings. I'll do multiples of the same pairings, especially those I like ((coff LeeTen coff)), and some contradictory pairings. For example, one chapter may be ShikaTema. The next could very well be ShikaIno. However, the one pairing that most definitely will not be gracing my literature is NejiTen. And the the only pairing with Gaara will be GaaOC, and the only one with Sasuke will be SasuOC. So, um... enjoy, please!

Disclaimer: 2020 does not own Naruto, Phoenix Wright, Miriam-Webster or their dictionaries, Harvest Moon, Time Stranger Kyoko, DDR, Total Drama Island, or anything else she would like to own. But she does own an omlette pan!

_------------------------------------------------_

_**Synthetic Heartbeats~Always**_

_First Love: LeeTen. The Heat Of Summer Matches That Of Love_

The afternoon sun beat down heavily on the three ninja, honing their skills in the clearing that served as their training field. Practice dummies and targets, all looking worse for the wear, were scattered around, each reaching their limit of damage. And yet, they were still not through...

Tenten sighed as she slumped against the tree. It was ninety-five degrees today, even hotter with the sun's torrid heat, and she felt ready to pass out. This was insane- every other team in Konoha had the day off on account of the heat wave. But her crazy sensei insisted they practice today- all day- to 'prepare for any event in which we have a mission in a hot climate!' Idiot. She opened her bag, looking for a particular item, but stopped when she saw her teammate with it in his possession.

"Lee," her voice cracked in the heat. "What are you doing with my water bottle?"

Lee stopped midmotion, the water bottle halfway to his lips. "Oh! Tenten! I did not realize this was your water bottle! Here," he said, walking over to hand it to her. "I am sorry."

Slowly, she reached for it- when had her arm gotten so heavy?- but her arm faltered. It was simply too hot.

Lee shoved the bottle to her mouth. "Tenten! Are you alright?" He looked worried.

After taking a few gulps from the bottle, she felt a bit better. "Yeah, yeah, I'm fine... it's just so hot..."

Suddenly, a short girl with short brown hair, dressed in blue, crashed through the brush. "It's too freakin' hot..." she muttered. "Oh, hey! I've been looking for you guys."

Tenten and Lee looked up. Neji, on the other side of the clearing, kept his eyes closed, but turned his head in the direction of the girl. "Chi-chan," Tenten said. "Where's Hai? She's normally joined to you at the hip."

"Uh, yeah, that's kind of why I'm here. See, she's having a little functioning in trouble in the heat. So I thought, we should have a beach party to cool her down. Everyone's invited, so I have to go around to tell them all. Lucky me. It'll be at North Konoha Beach in about, oh, two hours. Wear swim clothes," she added before leaving the way she had come. The three teammeates were silent untill the sound of Chi cursing at the heat faded away from hearing.

"Well, that seems utterly pointless," Tenten complained. "I'm definitely not going."

"Why not, Tenten?! I am sure it will be great fun!" Lee urged her to go.

Across the clearing, Neji silently rose. "Let's go. I think we're done here." They made their way through the village to their respective homes, splitting up when the road diverged into three roads, each member needing to take a different road. After making sure Lee had left, he turned to his female teammate. "You are going to that party," he said. It wasn't a question.

Tenten sighed aggrivatedly. She knew what this was about. Both Neji and Hai had been trying to get her and Lee together for some time. Thankfully, most of their plans backfired since they didn't work together well. It's not that she minded Lee, it's just, well... Lee liked Sakura. Yes, that was it. Lee still liked Sakura, and if Tenten was to be with him, well, she would like it to happen out of his own free will, preferably when he was over Sakura. Not that she wanted to be with him, mind! But she had to admit, it would be nice... Ha. If it was even remotely possible. "Neji, I am not going. There is nothing that could possibly be done to get me there. And if you try, you will know just what metal tastes like when it has been force-fed to you by an angry woman." She waved a kunai in the air to illustrate her point.

Neji simply shrugged and began walking away. Feeling satisfied, Tenten turned towards her own path and started down it. However, Neji's voice stopped her... "I'll bet anything Lee would be in his swimming apparel," the surely voice said quietly. "I'll also bet he's ripped, from all that Taijutsu training..."

And that statement, Tenten can assure you, had absolutely nothing to with how she ended up at North Konoha Beach approximately an hour and a half later, dressed in her figure-flattering pale pink bikini that was modestly covered in a strawberry-themed cover up (closed all the way up, of course).

"I still don't know why the hell I'm here..." she muttered. Under an umbrella a few feet away, on top of a towel with a full moon pattern on it, Hai lay in her black tankini, sprawled out and nonmoving in the heat, bearing a slight resemblence to a slug. On another towel, this one bearing an outstretched wing pattern, sat Chi, contrasting Hai's dress with a banana-yellow tankini.

"Oh, Tenten!" Chi called. "You can sit over here with us. The party hasn't started yet, you're the first to come..." Tenten joined them, spreading out her (very plain) red towel. Chi shook her head. "When you force it next to ours, that towel must loose all its confidence. You should get a patterned one."

"Thanks, but I'm fine with this one." She then noticed that, not only had Hai not said anything, she wasn't moving. "Um... Is she all right?"

"Who, her? She's fine. Anything higher than 76 degrees (F) sends her sweating. But it's too bad she's feeling so tired, because..." Chi leaned close to her little sister's ear, "I invited the Sand siblings to our little shindig."

Suddenly, the lifeless mass of skin that had been Hai not three seconds before leaped into the air with all the energy she normally had. Sans the Thursday coffee jolt or the Saturday energy drink spike.

"What?! WHAT?! The Sandsibs?! HERE?! Are you firebirding crazy?! #&#&#^^&!!^#%&...." Hai broke into a stream of unintelligible curses.

Tenten blinked. "Was that even a word?"

"%^%..."

Chi grinned slyly. "Why would it bother you so much, sister dear? Unless- le gasp!- you have feelings for a certain Sand ninja?" She chuckled.

"EH?! No! T-that's completely asinine! What would ever lead you to think that?!"

The older but shorter girl began ticking off her fingers. "Um, well, that reaction, for one. Your tendency to freak out like his anytime the Sand ninja come, that's two. Three, and the final, that cute little poem 'My heart forever belongs to the Sand' in your diary that lasts for five pages."

"Um, well, anyone would react like that when you surprise them li- HEY! You read my diary?!"

"Heh. I enjoy a romantic comedy every now and again. By the way, your sketches are very lifelike. I just want to know how you would know what he looks like witho-"

"ENOUGH! I'm going in the water!" Hai stalked away, seething and embarassed.

Chi laughedas she stretched and looked up. "Oh!" She jumped up. "More people!"

Tenten glanced towards the newcomers, but looked back aay with a sigh- none of them were who she really wanted to see. During the next hour, after Kiba and Hinata arrived, came (in order): Ino, Sakura (in the same bathing suit as Tenten, no less!!), Naruto, Sasuke (to Chi's delight), Shikamaru, Chouji, and Neji. Seeing Tenten, he grinned in a self-satisfied way- if this was a battle, he had just won. And he didn't even do anything. Finally, the much-anticipated Sandsibs made their appearence.

"Hello, Konoha!" Temari leaped onto the beach with surprising grace. She had dressed for attention, in a metallic silver bikini that reflected light in a way that drew attention to her ample curves, and attention was what she recieved, especially from Shikamaru, which made her all the more energetic.

Let's skip Kankuro, because when I tried to imagine what he would look like, I ended up running to the bathroom, yelling for soap to wash my eyes. ((shudder))

And Gaara... was wearing simple red swim trunks. Despite his being the most simple dress, from the water, Hai's eyes seemed to be unable to see anything else. Before anyone could notice, and subsequently embarass her for it, however, she looked away and continued splashing in the water like an overgrown five-year-old.

Laid out on her towel, Tenten began regretting ever coming. Sakura was here?! Since when were Sakura and Hai and Chi friends? _And she shows up in the exact same swimsuit I'm wearing?!_ She had come to this stupid party to try and get Lee's attention, but how was she going to do that dressed the same as the object of his affections (who was not her)?! She rose to leave- she was sick of this already!- but stopped short.

Lee was here.

And, just as Neji had predicted earlier, he was, in fact, quite ripped.

"Tenten! I thought you were not coming!" He was smiling, and for a minute, Tenten didn't know which was hotter- the torrid sun, or the rising heat of her body.

"Uh, yeah. I changed my mind." Slowly, she sat back down on the towel. Happily bounding over next to her, Lee spread out a green towel next to her read one.

"Look, Tenten! It is like Christmas!" He seemed so excited for no reason at all. It made Tenten smile, too.

"Ah, look at that. It's Christmas in July!" Chi said contentedly from her position next to her beloved Sasuke.

"Chi!" Temari called from the water. Tenten noticed a mischeivious gleam in her eye before she stood up. Going down to the water, she walked past Gaara- who it seemed was building a sand castle- to the four-pigtailed girl. The both took running dives into the ocean's waves, and vanished from sight. Hai, completely oblivious to any and everything going on around her, treaded water in the deeper sea several feet out from where the other two had dived. Suddenly, she started screaming and flailing.

"KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" Her head vanished under, and all that was left were a few bubbles repidly rising to the surface. Before anyone could do anything, Gaara was in the water, at the spot where Hai had just vanished. He dove, and surfaced a few seconds later with Hai wrapped in his arms, a scared and confused look on her face. Carrying her back to shore, he then gently placed her down on her full moon towel. No one seemed to notice Chi and Temari returning.

"I-I don't know!" Hai gasped, still a little shell-shocked. "I was j-just swimming and all of a sudden Hai-hai go bye-bye! FWOOM! I th-th-thought I was gonna be sleeping with the f-fishies for sure!" After a few minutes of incoherent mutterings and strange sound effects, Chi took over comforting her sister.

"There, there... You're OK, now, Hai... and it's all thanks to Gaara (whorescuedyouandcarriedyoubackhereinhisarms)," Chi whispered the last part so that only Hai could hear her. Straightening herself, she said, more loudly, "You should thank him, liitle sister- he did just save your life."

Hai's face was red as she turned to Gaara, who was standing protectively over her. "Ummm... thankyou."

He knelt down next to her. "I'm sorry, I didn't catch that..."

She looked at his face- so close to hers!- and took a deep breath, then said, "Thank y- mmmfff?!?!" Hai blinked. Gaara's face was much closer now... and something soft and warm was on her lips... Finally, she realized- Gaara was kissing her! Without freaking out- as she was prone to doing in situations like this- her eyes gently drifted closed and she pressed her body against his. Embracing each other, they deepened the kiss. Chi and Temari fist-bumped. It was really a very cute scene.

Except that it was so cute, it made Tenten sick. Hai was lucky- she always ended up on top. This time she managed to get the guy she was in love with, too. Why couldn't Tenten be that lucky? She quickly glanced at Lee, who was standing next to Sakura. She had a polite look on her face, one of someone who wasn't really listening but was merely pretending for his sake, as Lee recounted the details of his last mission. Sakura didn't even want him to be there, while Tenten wanted him to be with her so bad she could hardly stand it, yet he still insisted on being with Sakura. Life simply was not fair.

While Tenten was lost in her thoughts, she didn't notice Neji slip in between Temari and Chi, point to her, then Lee, and the grin that alighted the two matchmakers' faces.

"Saaay, Tenten," Chi slid next to her, "You havn't gone in the water yet. Me and Temari are going in- wanna come?"

"No, thanks, I'm fine..." Tenten protested, but between Temari and Chi, she was dragged down to the water.

"Now we just need take this off..." Temari tugged at the cover up.

"Wha-?! No! It's alright, I don't want to swim...!" Dragging her feet, she kept resisting, until Sakura and Ino came up beside her and assited Temari and Chi in their fight.

"Yeah, come on, Tenten!" Sakura was oblivious to any animosity between her and the older girl. "The water's great!"

Tenten put up an adimirable resistance, but in the end, she stood ankle-deep in seawater, still wearing the cover up. The moment the other girls let her go, she turned to bolt... but ran straight into Lee, who had followed them out.

"Yes, come on, Tenten! You cannot come to a beach party and not swim!" He tried to pull her out further, but she resisted.

"NO! I don't want to swim! Just leave me alone!" Tenten stormed out of the surf and back to her towel. This had stopped being fun... well, actually, it had never started being fun. It started out with the terrible heat, and then she had been late to the training grounds because she had misplaced her senbon that held her hair up. When she arrived late, her psychotic sensei had made her run 50 laps around the village as a punishment. In addition to the 50-lap warm-up that was enforced upon them daily. In sympathy, Lee had run it with her. That had been a good thing, yes. However, training in the ninety-degree weather had given her a mild heatstroke, which ruined any lasting effects of that. Then Neji had forced her to come (she wouldn't admit to coming out of her own free will- best to blame Neji for it all), and her rival had dressed in the same swimsuit as her! The only thing she could do now was to wait in her cover up until the party was over.

Hai, from her position under the umbrella with Gaara, looked up at Tenten, confused. She leaped up towards her friend, and in one fell swoop, had pulled her up, dusted the sand off, and removed the cover up. "Come on, Tenten, it looks like everyone's waiting for you in the water."

Everyone's eyes were on her, and her stupid pink bikini. First, they looked at Tenten, then at Sakura (in the same attire), then back to Tenten. In truth, it looked better on the older kunoichi, who had more curves, and pink complemented better with her brown hair than Sakura's pink. It was very awkward, the way she and Sakura stared each other down, and everyone's eyes danced between the two. Altough, she had to admit, she did enjoy the way Lee looked at her, the way the bikini hugged her ample chest.

"Eh?! Tenten, you and Sakura are wearing the same swimsuits!"

Chi, who had since made her way back to land, whacked her little sister upside her head. "Thank you, leiutenent obvious."

The stare-down continued until Sakura, in an attempt to be polite, said, "That bikini looks nice on you, Tenten."

"Hmph." Tenten grunted, contemplating all the ways in which she could kill Hai- so far, she was up to 649. "Will everyone please stop staring at me before I go insane?"

Everyone looked away- she just might follow through on that threat. Angrily, Tenten grabbed her cover up and put it back on, then sat back down on her towel, knees pulled tight to her chest and arms folded on top of them. The partygoers, divining her bad mood, seemed to migrate away, none wanting to further provoke her temper. Soon, Tenten was the only one left on the shore.

"Tenten?" She looked up. It was Lee. "May I sit down?" Without a word, she waved to Lee's empty towel. Sitting, he stared at everyone playing in the surf. "Are you sure you do not want to swim? Everyone seems to be having fun."

"Hrrmph."

"Alright, I am sorry. I did not mean to press the issue. May I ask you one thing, though?"

Tenten thought for a minute. Well, it couldn't hurt. "Shoot."

"What is the real reason you do not want to swim?"

Ah. He cut straight to the heart of the matter. "I... don't feel like it."

Lee turned to look at her, but she kept looking the other way. He reached over and gently touched her face, turning it until they were facing each other. "I know that is not the reason. Tenten, would you please tell me?"

"I... I..." She couldn't think straight with his hand on her face like this... "Fine, the truth?" This was it. The moment of truth. "I... didn't want to be seen in the same bathing suit as Sakura..."

"Why?"

Tenten took a deep breath. Here it was... "I... well, I didn't want to be compared with her-"

"Tenten!" Her eyes widened at the ferocity of Lee's voice, and the concerned expression crossing his face. "How could you think you could be compared with Sakura? There is no comparison!"

Yeah, there it was. Lee's sick, one-sided love of Sakura. Tenten sighed. This day was slowly becoming more and more unbearable. The sun was setting on what, in her opinion, was one of the worst days ever. Although it was a nice sunset.

She had been in her own mind for no more than a second before she was forced up and whirled around- and then Lee's lips were pressed hard on hers. It was as if time had stood still, and all the good things in the world- chocolate-chip cookies and sweet raspberry soda, and the feeling you get when you get exactly what wanted for Christmas, and the way a soft kitten feels when it purrs in your lap- had joined together in the warmth of Lee's body pressed against hers. After a minute, he pulled away, but still held on to her waist.

"Eh..." Tenten' mind had gone blank. All she could think about was how wonderfully Lee kissed... "What...?"

He pulled her close and kissed the top of her head. "There is no comparison because you are more beautiful than anyone or thing! I need to tell you something, Tenten. I have recently been feeling... different when I am with you. I asked Neji to help me, and I told him what was wrong. Neji told me that I was in love with you. I did not know how that could be- I was in love with Sakura. But then I realized, I did not really love her. I only liked her. I love you, Tenten."

Tenten looked up into Lee's eyes. "Lee..." Suddenly, she was kissing him with all her might. "I... love you too..." she whispered when the kiss was broken.

A huge grin alight Lee's face. "Well, there is only one thing to say now," he said, stepping back. "Tenten, will you go out with me? I will protect you with my life!" He flashed the 'Good Gai' pose.

Tenten smiled. "Of course, Lee." Maybe this day wasn't so bad after all.

And so they watched the rest of the sunset together, on that beach. When it ws dark, Chi lit a bonfire, and she and Hai performed some kind of dance around it. Everyone learned the Beaver Song (Hai's personal favorite), ate s'mores, and told ghost stories. Despite the incredible heat of the day, it was very cold when the sun was gone. Tenten leaned in closer to Lee, his body warm on hers. Yes, maybe this day wasn't so bad after all.

------------------------------------

2020: And that's it for chapter one, folks. I'm gonna chug a gallon of coffee and maybe have a Red Bull or three, then write the next one. I don't know what's next... Oh well. See ya then.


	2. ShikaTema

2020: I'm back! Chapter two of SH~A will be ShikaTema! Please love it!

Disclaimer: 2020 doesn't own Naruto. She does, however, own a dictionary that appears to be on steroids.

_------------------------------------------------_

_**Synthetic Heartbeats~Always**_

_Second Love: ShikaTema. The Dark Horse Of Love Races Ahead!_

"Why am I here?" Temari muttered to herself. The endless fields of the Konoha Horse Farm lay before her, and all manner of horses dotted the landscape. Paliminos, Arabians, Morgans, Thoroughbreds, and more raced through the green pastures, and in and out of the red farmhouses.

"Because I invited you to come to my grandparents' farm, silly!" Ino smiled happily and whacked Temari on the back.

Ino had invited her teammates, Chi, Hai, and Temari and her brothers to the farm today for free horseback riding lessons, courtesy of Grandma Sooseji Yamanaka, Ino's dad's mother. Shikamaru and Chouji only came because they knew Ino would nag them forever unless they did, and Hai got super-excited about the horses and dragged Chi along. Temari only came because Ino was her best friend, so she forced her brothers to come along also. When Kankuro protested that horses were for girls, Ino simply said "You'd be perfect, then," and that ended any other arguments.

"Aww! Neechama, look at the horses!" Hai was getting more and more excited- maybe she had ridden horses before she lost her memory.

Chi whacked her upside the head. "Wow, genius, what else would be on the Konoha Horse Farm? Carrots?" But despite her sarcasm, she was getting excited too- she loved horses.

"What a drag..." Shikamaru sighed and leaned against a tree.

Temari glared in his direction. "Did you have to bring along the lazy cloud-boy?" she asked Ino. Shikamaru could make doing just about anything feel stupid, and she didn't want to feel like that the first time she rode a horse. Ino just shrugged, oblivious to her friend's animosity to her teammate.

"Well, hello there! May I help you with anything? I'm Sooseji Yamanaka, co-owner of this farm..." A plump, happy-looking old lady with short white hair and blue eyes appeared next to them.

"Grammie! Grammie, it's me, Ino!" Ino cried, flinging her arms around her grandmother.

"Oh? Is that really you, Inee-meeny? My, how you've grown!" Sooseji patted Ino's head. "And who are all your friends?"

"Grammie, this is my best friend, Temari Sabaku, and her brothers, Kankuro and Gaara. And you've met my teammates, Shikamaru and Chouji..."

The old woman chuckled. "Oh, yes, their fathers and your own were thick as theives! You couldn't think about Inoichi, Shikaku, or Chouza without thinking of the other two!"

"And this is Chitomo Tsubasa- she's, uh, new in the village, and her sister, Haipa Ok- hey, where's Hai?"

Chi tossed her head from side to side. "What? She was just next to me... THERE!" Across a field, slightly far away, Hai was approaching a large chestnut-brown horse. Smiling, she reached out to pet its nose.

"Oh no!" Sooseji took off running towards her. "That's one of our more misbehaved horses! There's no telling what she'll do to her!" Unfortunately, the years had not been kind to the old woman's speed. Ino, Temari, and Chi quickly overtook her, but before any of them could reach the pigtailed girl, she had climbed onto the horse's back.

"Yay! Look at me, Neechama! I'm a cowgirl!" Urging the horse into a gentle trot, Hai smiled at the dumbfounded expression on Sooseji's face.

"No one could ever ride Tobidasu, especially not bareback!" She warily glared at her granddaughter. "You didn't tell me you were bringing a professional!"

"Why is she called Tobida-" Chi's question was answered as said horse reared back and leaped high and far, almost as if she had wings. _Tobidasu means to take wing, and that horse jumps as if she has them..._

"That... was... AWESOME!" Hai smiled wide. "C'mon, Tobidasu! Let's do it again!" She and the horse rode off.

Sooseji shook her head. "Well, she certaintly doesn't need lessons... Nesuru!" She called to a man riding a horse a little ways away. "Nesuru, that girl is riding Tobidasu- please keep an eye on her!"

"Yes, Mrs. Yamanaka!" Nesuru and his yellow horse galloped after Hai and her wild mare.

The old woman turned back to Ino, Temari, and Chi. "Well, let's get you and the boys saddled up!" Waving to Kankuro, Gaara, Shikamaru, and Chouji, they followed her into the nearest farm. "The first step," she said as they all gathered around her, "Is to find the proper horse. Take a bit to look around and find a horse that you can really connect with- it's a very important process!"

Shikamaru, avoiding all physical motion as he possibly could, walked over to the nearest stall. "This one," he muttered.

"That's Koosan," Sooseji told him. "She's very lazy- are you sure that's the one you want to ride?" Temari and Ino tried their hardest not to laugh.

"She's you, if you were a horse, Shik," Ino chuckled. "She's too lazy to even eat, some days." She walked down to the other end of the stable. "Oh, Grammie, I want to ride Orhime!"

"Of course, dear. She's in here," her grandmother told her, leading a small white horse out of a stall. "Orhime was the first horse Inee-meeny ever rode," she added for the benefit of the others.

"Aww! This one is so pretty!" Chi was petting the nose of a light brown horse with a star on his nose and white stocking legs.

"That's Hayasa, one of our racehorses."

"I'd like to ride him, please!"

Chouji glanced around worridly at the huge animals. "Whice horse is gentler?" He asked.

Sooseji led a gold mare out of a stall. "This is Sharin, one of our carthorses. I've never know her to startle or rear."

Kankuro was drawn to a brown-and-white sploched horse named Daden. "He's very energetic," the horse's owner told him.

Quietly, Gaara sat down on a fence- he wasn't going to ride.

Temari wandered up and down the aisle, looking for a horse to ride. None of them seemed to catch her eye... until she saw a large black horse standing in the shadow of his stall. "Mrs. Yamanaka," she called, "I think I would like to ride this one!"

Sooseji came over and led the horse out of his stall. "This is Ranboo- he was rescued from a horse farm in quite deplorable conditions. I don't know how well he rides.." But Temari's heart was set on riding Ranboo. Sooseji showed them how to saddle up, then had them lead their horses outside to a fenced-in riding ring. After mounting, she began showing them all the basics- that is, until she discovered that Chi already knew how to ride.

"I didn't know, either," she said almost apologetically. "Maybe it's just natural?" Chi and Hayasa were allowed to ride around the pastures on their own.

Ino, of course, already knew how to ride- Sooseji had taught her when she was very little, on the same horse she rode today, Orhime. "Grammie, why don't we each teach them? I'll stay here and teach Temari and Shikamaru, and you take Chouji and Kankuro to another riding ring. That way, with smaller classes, they'll learn better!"

"That's a wonderful idea, dear! Kankuro, Chouji, please follow me..." the old woman and the two boys left to find another riding ring.

"Alright!" Ino cried, causing Ranboo to startle a little. "Starting today, I'm your new riding instructor, and you may refer to me as General Commander Princess Sexy Dynamite Ino!"

"How about I call you Commander Dumbass and then you teach us something about horse riding?"

Ino glared at her best friend. "Shut up, Temari!"

Shikamaru sighed.

Ino then taught them some more basics and had them practice the basics. Soon, it was afternoon, and time to eat. After unsaddleing their horses, she led them up to a large house on a hill overlooking the endless green pastures- Sooseji's house. Her grandmother was already there with Kankuro, Gaara and Chouji. "Nesuru is locating your other two friends, the natural-born horsewomen," Sooseji said.

No sooner had the words been said before Chi and Hai walked in the door. "This is fun! You should've taken us out here ages ago, Ino!" Hai laughed.

"Lunch is served! Salad and burgers!" A white-haired old man carried a platter out to the back porch. Everyone followed.

"Grampa! Everyone, this is my grandfather, Beekon. Grampa, this is Chouji, Shikamaru, Temari, Chi, Hai, Gaara, and Kankuro."

"Hey, kids! Thanks for coming down to the farm today. Soo loves company." He leaned over the side of the porch and yelled, "Nesuru! Get the others and come have lunch with us!"

"Yes sir, Mr. Yamanaka!" Soon they were joined by three good-looking guys and one pretty girl. Pretty wierd, that is.

"Everyone, these are the hired hands. Nesuru Tonbo, Kitto Ooame, Jison Dokira, and Marion Nonbiri." Ino intoduced them to all her guests.

Nesuru was a cute guy, with golden brown hair and green eyes. Kitto was also attractive- he had shining blue eyes and black hair. The last guy was also a heart throb- Jison had brown eyes and brown hair. Marion, the only girl, had... one green eye and one blue eye. Her strangeness was further enunciated by her rainbow-colored hair and colorful clothes. The four took seats wherever there ws space- the seating arrangement ultimately ended up with Kitto between Chi and Hai, Jison next to Ino (to her delight), Marion next to Kankuro, and Nesuru next to Temari. He smiled and offered her a bottle of water, which she graciously took. No one noticed Shikamaru glare him.

"Is it just me, or do all the horses seem... on edge?" Chouji asked.

"They say horses can sense the emotions of the rider, Chouji," Shikamaru said. "If you're nervous, they'll be, too. If you're not-" he was cut off as something jerked his head backwards over the porch rail. It was a bold horse, biting on his ponytail. This caused Temari to laugh.

"I think the pont lost its tail, and wants yours instead!" She said, laughing.

"What a drag..."

"Go on, scat!" Beekon chided the horse, who released its captive and ran off.

"I don't know about you all, but I'm having so much fun riding Tobidasu!" Hai said before stuffing her mouth full of burger. After swallowing, she said, "I think we cleared ten feet easy on out last jump! Vertically, that is!"

"She was at the hurdle range," Nesuru explained.

"Hey, Hai, you're not the only one with talent- Chi's a natural too!" Ino called.

"She just absorbed all my skillz through osmosis."

"That, sister dear, would be dependant on you actually having skillz."

"HEY! I rode a wild horse bareback! What about you?!"

"I _saddled_ and rode a racehorse." After Chi told her that, Hai didn't say another word for the rest of the meal.

"Jison, why don't you join us for the lessons?" Ino asked, with a gleam in her eye. Jison shook his head.

"Sorry, Ms. Ino, but I need to go check the fence on the far south side of the pasture."

"I'll go with you, Ms. Ino," Nesuru said, winking at Temari.

"Oooh! Nesuru, that'd be wonderful!"

"And I'll join Mrs. Yamanaka's group, then!" Marion seemed excited. "I don't have anything else to do."

Sooseji smiled. "Oh, Marion, that would be nice. Having another experienced rider's assistance would help so much!" The rainbow-haired girl's two-colored eyes sparkled.

Soon, everyone had finished and it was time to get back to riding. Ino, Temari, Shikamaru, and the newest addition, Nesuru, all went back to their riding ring. After saddling the horses back up, they began their lessons once again.

Bringing Ranboo to a trot in the ring, Temari was surprised to see Nesuru and his yellow horse (whose name was Asahi) ride up next to her. "I'm surprised that Ranboo behaves so well- we havn't ridden him yet, as I imagine Mrs. Yamanaka told you," he remarked.

Temari giggled. "Well, maybe I'm just a good horsewoman." The two laughed, unaware of Shikamaru's dark glare behind them... but Ino noticed.

"What's the matter, Shik? You look a little miffed," she said cheerfully, in a voice only Shikamaru could hear.

"It's nothing, Ino. Go away."

"Are you jealous of Nesuru?"

"I'm more jealous of this horse than I'll ever be of him," he said as he patted Koosan.

Suddenly, Asahi reared back a little bit. Normally this would have posed no major threat- Koosan and Orhime both backed up before they or their riders could come to harm, and Asahi settled back down almost instantly. However, normally, there wouldn't have been a previously abused, super-powerful, jumpy horse riding next to her. Ranboo bolted away, clearing the fence with feet to spare, and dashing through the pasture, towards the south.

Ino shreiked. "THE SOUTH! JISON NEEDED TO FIX THE SOUTH FENCE!"

Panicked, Nesuru began urging his horse towards the gate. "Ms. Ino! Open the gate! We'll get her!" But Ino never did open the gate- she was too busy watching as her teammate urged the laziest horse on the farm into a jump that cleared the riding ring fence, and gallop full-speed in the direction of Temari and her runaway horse.

Shikamaru raced southwards, his horse spurred on by some invisible force. Despite never being taught how to ride a horse running this fast, he reacted naturally, urging Koosan on faster and faster. Soon, Temari and Ranboo were in sight, closing in on the south fence. Up and away... they sailed into the forest beyond. Gritting his teeth, Shikamaru drove Koosan straight at the fence until she, too, jumped it. Through the forest they raced, neither stopping.

Temari held onto the reins for dear life. Whispering, tugging his mane, she tried anything to slow Ranboo down, but to no avail. Just when she thought he would keep running forever, he stopped- but she didn't. Temari pitched forward, crashing through the underbrush, until she was stopped by a tree. Sinking to the ground, she moaned in pain.

Shikamaru and Koosan raced thorough the forest, until he saw Ranboo. His happiness was short-lived, tough, when he saw that the horse was alone. Jumping off of the exhausted horse, he ran deeper into the woods on foot, yelling Temari's name.

Temari lay on the ground, in much pain. She could feel her concious beginning to slip away...

"TEMARI!"

What was that? Someone was calling her name... or was she just imagining it?

"TEMARI!"

That was... Shikamaru's voice? Now she knew she was imagining things. Shikamaru would never some looking for her... would he? In vain hope, she moaned as loud as she could. "Help..."

Shikamaru ran to the sound of Temari's voice. There she was! She was sprawled out in an uncomfortable-looking position. _Didn't know knees could twist like that..._ he thought, but another thought sickened him. That wasn't her knee. "Temari!" He yelled, running towards her battered body.

"Shika... maru...?" Even her voice seemed to be in pain.

Shikamaru grabbed her hand and ran his fingers through her bloodied hair- she must have cut her head. "Temari, it's OK, I'm here now, the others are on their way..." In truth, he didn't really know if the others were coming, but he had to keep her hopes up. "Temari, Temari, it's going to be OK, you're going to be OK..."

"Shika... maru...?" she repeated in her pained voice. "That... you...?"

"Yes, yes, it's me, Temari...."

"Why...?"

"Because I love you!" Shikamaru was taken aback. _Did I really just say that?!_

Even in her condition, he could see the surprise spread through Temari's bruised, bloodied features."Shika... maru... I..." her voice trailed off. "Come... closer..."

Bending so that his face alomst touched hers, Shikamaru was once again taken aback when Temari's lips pressed against his. "I... love you too..." she whispered.

"This way! Their horses are here!" The sound of hoofbeats reverberated around the forest. Shikamaru gave a shaky smile.

"See, Temari? I told you they were on their way..."

When Temari regained conciousness, she was in an unfamiliar room that smelled of antisceptic and medicine. "Wha'?" She sat up. She was in the hospital? How did she get here? The last thing she remembered was... was...

"Look who finally woke up. It's been such a drag, watching you sleep." Temari whirled around. Shikamaru sat on a chair leaned against the wall. That's right, the last thing she remembered was Shikamaru... telling her he loved her... She opened her mouth to speak, but he pressed a finger to her lips for silence. "We can talk about it when you get out."

"Temari?" Hai stood in the doorway. "Temari! Hey! Hey, guys, she's awake! Sakura was right!" Hai, Chi, Chouji, Ino, and Kankuro, holding Marion's hand, ran into the room. Temari looked at her brother.

"Did I miss something?" she asked, looking pointedly at their clasped hands.

Marion laughed. "Well, I got a little tired of the density of the male population, so I went Sadie Hawkins style, and, well... here we are!"

"Wait a minute! How long have I been out?!"

"Well, the horse farm was last week, and when we brought you in, Sakura took a look and said, 'Come back in a week', so we did, and she was right!" Hai said excitedly.

Temari jumped out of bed. "WHAT?! I've been unconcious for a whole freaking WEEK?!"

The pigtailed girl twiddled her thumbs. "Well... not unconcious, exactly... See, they kept you on some pretty heavy-duty drugs to keep you from feeling any pain, and, well, people under the influence tend to say the strangest things..."

Temari's eyebrow twitched. "Hai, what did I say?"

It was Shikamaru who answered. Wrapping his arms around Temari's waist and kissing her cheek, he said, "Oh, you just enlightened everyone on how much you _loooove_ me." Everyone laughed at the shocked expression on her face. Shikamaru laughed too. "It's OK, Temari, because, well, I love you too."

------------------------------------

2020: Ha. Finally finished. Except, I don't like how I ended it... but Neechama said it was fine, so...

Ino's grandmother, Sooseji's name means sausage. Her grandfather, Beekon's name means bacon.

Next time, I think I might do a KakaAnko (idea courteousy of my onee-chama). Stick around to find out!


	3. KakaAnko

2020: Yay! Chapter 3 is going to be KakaAnko. The idea is from my onee-chama. It's going to be short, though. And slightly sentimental.

Disclaimer: 2020 owns nothing. Nope. Nada. Zip, zilch, zero. Goose egg. Mmm... eggs.

_------------------------------------------------_

_**Synthetic Heartbeats~Always**_

_Third Love: KakaAnko. Heartbeats Echo In An Empty Room_

Three empty chairs stood around a small table. At one time, the chairs had held three young ninja-to-be, laughing, joking with each other. The room had been warm and friendly, full of happiness. Sometimes rivalry and animosity, but only the kind that came of true friendship. Kakashi sighed... the chairs had once held his students.

One by one, they had left. First Sasuke, lured by a promise of power, had left to join forces with Orochimaru. Naruto, after a failed rescue attempt, had left to travel with Jiraiya. And Sakura, not wanting to be a burden anymore, had begged to be an apprentice to Tsunade. Kakashi looked towards the dark ceiling. _It gets quite lonely when one has nothing to do..._ he sighed.

There was a knocking on the door. Rising and walking towards the door, he wondered who it could be. No one ever came by. Asuma and Kurenai were always busy with each other, and Kakashi did all her could to avoid Gai on a regular basis. Other than those three, no one had any reason to visit him. Opening the door, he was surprised to see Anko. The purple-haired woman stood on his front step, shifting nervously in her white trenchcoat.

"Hey, Kakashi," she said.

"Afternoon, Anko."

Anko shifted again and bit her lip. Kakashi raised an eyebrow. This was quite out of character for her. "Ah, so..." she began. "You havn't been out much in a while... and I thought maybe we could go get something to eat."

Kakashi looked at the calendar, and when he did, his eyes popped open. _That long?_ Turning back to Anko, he said, "Sure, why not?"

Anko smiled. "Alright! We can go to the Amaguriama..." She happily led Kakashi through the streets of Konoha to her favorite restaraunt. Once there, and after ordering, they sat down on one of the benches outside of the shop. They were passed by several genin- Lee and Tenten walked by, holding hands, seeming quite happy. Chouji ran past, chased by Ino, who was yelling something about 'eating all my diet pills!!!' Kiba walked by with his dog, with Hinata by his side. Kakashi sighed.

"What's wrong?" Kakashi turned to see Anko looking at him with a worried expression.

"It's... nothing."

"I'll bet you miss your genin."

He looked up, shocked. "What makes you say that?"

Anko shrugged. "Well, it's just that I've heard some of the senseis say that your students become like your kids. And, I mean, I've never had kids, or students either... but when I was little, I had a pet cat, and she was like my baby- I had her until I was fifteen." Here she choked a little. "That's when she... died. For a long time I acted like you are- five or six months, maybe? But then I realized, there's so much more I could be doing. You can never fly high if you always feel down. So stop feeling so down- they're all exactly where they want to be, anyway. Just think- neither of them would have been able to become what they now are without all the training you gave them. Feel proud, Kakashi- your kids are all grown up." An uncomfortable silence filled the air after Anko's speech.

Finally, Kakashi stood. Holding out his hand to the woman, he said, "Come on, Anko. Let's see if Tsunade has a mission for us- just you and me."

------------------------------------

2020: I told you it would be short!!! Next time, um... I don't know. Let me drink some coffee and think about it- who needs controlled substances when you have coffee, am I right?

Taking requests because I simply have writer's block.


End file.
